NEWS

Debenhams to close toy departments

Sources have reported that the department store chain is closing all its toy departments amidst ongoing turmoil.

Department store chain Debenhams is set to close its toy department, according to reports seen by Toy World.

Sources have also suggested that those head office employees working in the toy category have also been made redundant.

The news comes as Debenhams continues to pursue a CVA; the retailer has been in difficulty since reporting a record pre-tax loss of £491.5m in 2018, and in April 2019 was taken over by its lenders. As part of its rescue plans, the retailer closed three stores last year, and a further 19 between 11th-25th January. Another 28 will follow next year.

Debenhams’ chief executive, Stefaan Vansteenkiste, has previously said the chain was working to implement a ‘transformation’ despite a ‘challenging retail environment’.